Estonian officials have again refuted suggestions that the rupture of the Balticconnector gas pipeline and two data cables in the Baltic Sea by the Chinese cargo ship, NewNew Polar Bear, in October 2023 was an accident, ERR reports. “You would need to find a very stupid captain” for the incident to have been an accident,…
The Lithuanian government has launched a pilot scheme to combat the use of narcotics and smoking in schools, LRT reports. Seven schools in Vilnius, Klaipeda, and Alytus will take part in the pilot programme, placing students under closer surveillance. The aim is to develop a joint response plan to prevent drug use and smoking. The…
A notorious leader of organised crime in Latvia has been arrested in an international operation, LSM reports. Latvia’s State Police, in cooperation with Europol and the Spanish National Police, detained 16 people, including 10 in Latvia and 6 in Spain. The group is suspected of selling narcotics and of large-scale money laundering. Police confiscated marijuana,…
Estonia and the US have signed a memorandum of understanding on cooperation in countering information manipulation, ERR reports. The memorandum stresses the importance of media freedom in protecting the information space. Estonian state secretary Taimar Peterkop said that Estonia could share with allies its experience in dealing with Russian information attacks. The US has signed…
Lithuanian Prime Minister Ingrida Simonyte has expressed scepticism about an idea to establish a state-run second-pillar pension fund, Baltic News Network reports. She noted that there was plenty of competition in the pension fund market, and that the activities of pension funds were well regulated. The problem was that there was not much choice on…
The Latvian government is discussing possible changes to second-tier pension funds, LETA reports. The Latvian parliament, the Saeima, will consider a public initiative opposing the government’s plan to reduce automatic second-tier pension contributions, LSM reports. The petition collected the necessary signatures in record short time. The government has proposed transferring 1% of second-pillar pension funds…
Estonia will chair the Freedom Online Coalition (FOC) in 2025, Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna announced, ERR reports. He said that Estonia’s primary objective would be to share its know-how in building an e-state. Also, Estonia’s chairmanship would focus on values of openness, transparency, access to information, and inclusion, Tsahkna added. The FOC is a group…
Lithuania has established official diplomatic relations with the Kingdom of Tonga, BNS reports. The official ceremony took place in conjunction with the United Nations General Assembly meeting in New York. Until now, Tonga was one of the six remaining UN member states with which Lithuania had no diplomatic relations. Lithuanian Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis thanked…
The Latvian government plans to raise taxes on fuel, harmful beverages, tobacco, and gambling, LETA reports. Under the plan, the excise tax on fuel will amount to EUR 10 per tonne of CO2 in 2025 and to EUR 20 per tonne in 2026. The excise duty on sugary non-alcoholic beverages will rise from the current…